Encouraging for England

The way Costa Rica defended will give Roy Hodgson much to cheer. While Jorge Luis Pinto’s side are clearly comfortable with the ball, less can be said about their ability to shield the goalkeeper, Keylor Navas. Kevin Doyle’s headed opener was well taken but came after cumbersome dithering from Michael Umaña and the failure of the right-back, Júnior Díaz, to pick up the QPR forward in the box.

Worrying for England

There is quality and invention in the Costa Rica ranks, which will trouble England if they are given time and space on the ball.

Celso Borges (right), who plays in Sweden for AIK, is a key man for Pinto and showed just why here. The 26-year-old injected pace and picked up the tempo, he did so with the kind of quality which have left many wondering why one of Europe’s brighter lights haven’t come calling. He almost pulled Costa Rica level towards the end of the first half.. José Cubero, who started here in place of the highly rated 22-year-old Yeltsin Tejeda, also displayed some nice touches but was unable to impose himself as much once Diaz saw red.

When Gonzalez was sent off with Ireland already a goal to the good, Costa Rica could have crumbled. They didn’t. Instead they showed great heart and character in adversity – a trait which could come in very handy at the World Cup.

A good game for…

Joel Campbell, the 21-year-old Arsenal forward on loan at Olympiakos, looked subdued in the first half before springing into life. Strong, aggressive and with a serious burst of pace, he enjoyed a great deal of success trying to penetrate down Ireland’s right side. He was direct and was a real threat.

A poor game for…

Take your pick from any of the back four. Umaña was painfully slow and ungainly, while, especially in the first half when some first class dithering was punished by Doyle and Ireland, Díaz’s marking was poor and the 30-year-old, who plays in Germany for Mainz, will have to improve dramatically.

The captain, Bryan Ruiz, the former Fulham striker who spent last season at PSV, was kept extremely quiet by the robust defending of Everton’s Shane Duffy, making his international debut, and struggled to link up with Campbell to any real effect. It was no surprise when he was replaced with around a quarter of the match remaining. The 28-year-old needs to impose himself far more if Pinto’s side have any chance of escaping from Group D.

What must Costa Rica look at before the England game?

Seriously shoring up their defence would be a start while keeping cool in the heat of battle wouldn’t go amiss either. Costa Rica certainly possess some good footballers who are able to hurt teams – Borges the best of the bunch by far here – given the chance but unless they display far more solidity at the back, the likes of England , Uruguay and Italy will have field days.

Yes they were hamstrung badly following Diaz’s quite needless red card but in the build up to Doyle’s opener they had displayed a shakiness and level of uncertainty that will be seized upon when it comes to the matches which really count.

Once Campbell got into full flow and took up a position out wide, Costa Rica posed plenty of problems even if they were a man down. They appear to one of those sides of which not much will be expected in Brazil but, given the chance, and space, could well ruffle a few established feathers in the next few weeks. On this evidence, there is more about Costa Rica than mere plucky underdogs.